GAA19CA436

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that, during the third landing, the biplane landed hard and veered off the left side of the runway. The airplane ground looped and the left main landing gear collapsed. He added that he thought the tailwheel was swiveling, but not turning with the rudder. While working on repairs, he observed that the shear pins on the "Mollie heavy duty tailwheel" sheared off, which resulted in the tailwheel not working properly. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the lower right wing. The airport's automated weather observation station reported that, about 8 minutes before the accident, the wind was from 200° at 3 knots. The pilot landed the airplane on runway 15. The airplane was not made available to the Federal Aviation Administration or the National Transportation Safety Board for examination. The pilot reported that, during the third landing that day, the biplane landed hard and veered off the left side of the runway. The airplane ground looped, and the left main landing gear collapsed. The pilot added that he thought the tailwheel was swiveling but not turning with the rudder. While working on repairs, he observed that the shear pins on the tailwheel had sheared off. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the lower right wing. The airplane was not made available to the National Transportation Safety Board for examination, so the reason for the anomaly reported by the pilot could not be determined. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

• C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Landing flare-Not attained/maintained - C
• C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Pilot - C
• C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Directional control-Not attained/maintained - C